Will Big Brands Automatically Win the SEO Race?

More than one small business owner has lamented over the fact that it takes them months of back and forth with Google to recover from a manual action penalty, yet bigger websites/brands seem to recover in just a matter of weeks. Will larger sites automatically win the SEO race simply because they are too big to fail? Some SEO experts have pointed out, and I see their point, that Google can’t afford to block big name websites from the SERPs for too long because users would start to notice something was amiss. And if Google doesn’t deliver the best possible search results than users will find other ways to search…which is exactly the last thing Google wants.

Bigger brands tend to have an inherent advantage associated with their brand name; the bigger the site, and more powerful the brand, the larger the advantage no question about it. Google tends to weed out products and services that don’t deserve to be at the top of the search engines. In most cases, you simply cannot replicate the natural linking a great brand or product creates.

Big brands are going to have a much easier time earning links naturally because their name carries some weight. CNN.com is much more likely to get cited as a source than blogger XYZ simply because CNN.com is such a trusted and reputable source. I know I am more likely to link to SEO sites like Search Engine Land or Marketing Land because I trust those authors and their research, over a smaller SEO blog I’ve only just come across. That doesn’t mean I would never link to or share content from that smaller site, but it might take them a little longer to earn my trust (and links) as a reader. The same holds true for Google—you have to earn your way to the top of the SERPs and that takes a lot of work, as well as a lot of time.

But John E. Lincoln also made the point that:

Smaller sites do have the advantage of being able to react to changes in SEO more quickly in most cases. With respect to results, we really stress setting realistic expectations at the outset of the campaign.

With big brands comes big red tape. I know that with many of our larger clients getting content produced, the key to winning the SEO race, is a very arduous and time-consuming process. One blog post has to pass through 4 or 5 hands before it can go live, adding an extra week or two to the publication time line for every post. Every potential link opportunity has to be scrutinized and analyzed, or passed off to someone else to make happen. This slows the whole process down, making it harder to get the ball rolling and build momentum. Also, bigger brands are usually slower to the adapt to changes in the SEO game and that could make it harder for them to stay at the forefront of the SEO race.

For instance, in 2013 Google changed the rules regarding links from press releases. Now, links need to be nofollow and you can’t use exact match anchor text, only full links and branded keywords. We had one client that relied on a PR firm to manage their online PR and they had to completely re-work the approach they took to writing and distributing press releases, not to mention the internal changes that must have gone on at the PR firm. Big brands are historically slow to adapt to changing times, which gives smaller sites the chance to find new niches to claim and conquer before the bigger sites even realize what they are missing.

Big brands might have an easier time earning natural links from multiple sources, but that doesn’t mean they automatically win the SEO race. The key is to keep your head down, play by the rules, and focus on building the best possible website for your audience that you can. And remember that success isn’t defined by what the Big Boys are doing.

Read What Full Service SEO Clients Say About SEO Firm Brick Marketing

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"went above and beyond to help us with any SEO issues"

“We hired Brick Marketing to manage our SEO, but they ended up also managing our company blog, social media marketing, helped us launch a pay per click advertising campaign, migrated our website to a new domain and so much more! Our SEO Specialist is always quick to respond whenever we had a question and went above and beyond to help us with any SEO issues.”

– Mory Creighton, CEO, Pinpoint Laser Systems

"highly recommend Brick Marketing to all of my clients"

“After working with many other SEO firms and not being satisfied I finally was introduced to the Brick Marketing President and Founder, Nick Stamoulis. Nick Stamoulis has educated me about SEO and has provided me with a well rounded SEO package, not only does he offer top quality services he also educates his clients and spends the time to explain everything and their SEO pricing is competitive. I will highly recommend Brick Marketing to all of my clients. Brick Marketing is an A+ for SEO services.”

– Mike Cardella, Integrated Computer Services

"Brick Marketing has been a tremendous resource for our business"

“Brick Marketing has been a tremendous resource for our business. Through their expertise with the ever changing world of SEO, our web presence is as strong as ever. Our working relationship with Nick Stamoulis and Danielle Bachini has been outstanding. In collaboration with web designer Chris Roberts, we were also able to develop the perfect responsive website that truly reflects our business. Thank you Brick Marketing!​”

– Ellen Parlee, Parlee Farms

"Our keyword rankings have improved and traffic has increased"

“The Brick Marketing team, was critical to ensuring that our new Web site is optimized to drive maximum traffic. Our keyword rankings have improved and traffic has increased thanks to her assistance and advice. In addition, they executed a strategic link building program that helped further increase Web traffic.”

– Lauren LaFronz, Director of Marketing, enChoice, Inc.

"Brick Marketing is rock solid and essential in building a strong marketing foundation."

“Brick Marketing is extremely valuable for feedback and advice in many aspects of marketing, not just SEO and I look forward to continuing to work with them over the long term to continually improve our business and increase sales. That’s what it’s all about. Just like their name implies, Brick Marketing is rock solid and essential in building a strong marketing foundation.”

– Jeff Nicholson, President Freely Creative, Inc. / Websticker.com

"Brick Marketing is "solid" when it comes to support for SEO marketing advice"

“I had been impressed for a long time with the content that Brick Marketing was sharing in their informative blog posts and articles. I chatted with Nick Stamoulis a couple times and decided that he was the expert I wanted to work with. I have worked with Brick Marketing for about six months and they have helped us resolve several SEO related issues pertaining to our website. Our account rep is always just an email away with answers to any questions I have and suggestions for how we can improve what we’re doing. Brick Marketing is “solid” when it comes to support for SEO marketing advice. I definitely recommend them if you want to feel more secure about how your website is performing in searches and have the confidence that everything being done to improve your rank is white hat and legit.”

– Paul Rarick, Debbiegrattan.com

"Brick Marketing is levels above all others...an integral part of my team"

“I have formed an invaluable marketing partnership with Brick Marketing. Nick Stamoulis and the rest of the Brick Marketing team are professional, timely, thorough and take time to, not only succeed at the tasks, but also educate myself and my team on the strategies in the process. Since my first encounter working with Brick, I’ve changed organizations and have taken them along with me…they are that good! In my experience in working with many outside agencies who over-promise and under-communicate, I can truly state that Brick Marketing is levels above all others and vested in our relationship. They are not just an SEO consultant, but an integral part of my team. I highly recommend Brick Marketing for any company looking to significantly increase search engine competitiveness and internet presence.​”

– Jodi Murphy, Marketing Director EUXmedia

"traffic has increased over 80% year-over-year"

“When we started working with Brick Marketing, we had just been subjected to a Google algorithm update and our websites both took substantial hits to traffic. Within a few months, Brick has taken both of our websites to pre-algorithm traffic and conversion levels, and for the CallFinder site, the traffic has increased over 80% year-over-year. Their expertise in SEO, responsive design, and content marketing helped us turn the situation around, and we could not be happier with the results we’ve seen in just our first four months of working with them. The team we work with at Brick Marketing is always available for off-the-cuff consultations and are at the ready to provide recommendations and suggestions to improve our site’s appearance and performance. They are truly a hands-on partner, which is immensely valuable to our business.​”

"dependable, professional SEO company"

“Brick Marketing has been a dependable, professional SEO company that has helped us get results. In the last 6 months of using their services, visits to our website have increased by almost 30%. Our dedicated SEO Specialist was pleasant to deal with. Her suggestions for articles and press releases were industry specific. Brick Marketing always answered our phone calls and emails within an hour which made us feel valued as a client. I would recommend Brick Marketing to all businesses to handle their SEO needs.”

– JoAnne Loftus, Archival Designs, Inc.

"superior knowledge of marketing on the internet"

“I have had the good fortune to work with SEO expert Nick Stamoulis and his team at Brick Marketing and it was clear form the get go that Nick had superior knowledge of marketing on the internet. The SEO campaign and technical writing that Brick Marketing provides has been impressive, where in the past we struggled to find the high levels of competence in these two skill sets. Were only just beginning with Brick Marketing and look forward to growing with their expert guidance. Thank you Nick Stamoulis and the Brick Marketing team!”